Lesson

Whenever my mother, who taughtsmall children forty years,asked a question, shealready knew the answer."Would you like to" meantyou would. "Shall we" wasanother, and "Don't you think."As in "Don't you thinkit's time you cut your hair."

So when, in the bare room,in the strict bed, she said,"You want to see?" her handswere busy at her neckline,untying the robe, not lookingdown at it, stitchesbristling where the breasthad been, but straight at me.

I did what I always did:not weep --she never wept--and made my face a ...